Category Archives: writing

Wow! Moby Dick

Posted on July 16, 2016 by jyourist

I just finished reading Moby Dick. For the first time. Somehow in school I was never required to read it. Somehow in all the reading I have done for my own personal pleasure since, I have never been enticed by … Continue reading →

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“Whacked” by C.K. Williams

Posted on March 5, 2016 by jyourist

(from the Poetry Society limited edition (450), illustrated with woodcuts by Nicholas Garland, artist and Daily Telegraph political cartoonist, and printed by Phil Abel of Hand & Eye letterpress studio, London. Set in Plantin on a 200gsm Fabriano paper)

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Many miles before I sleep

Posted on February 27, 2016 by jyourist

I am presently buried beneath piles of research papers. Plugging along. They are taking me about 40 minutes to an hour apiece to grade. (Who were those politicians who complained about how easy a teacher’s life is, leaving school at … Continue reading →

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Always time for a little Mozart

Posted on January 27, 2016 by jyourist

I have always loved Mozart. His vitality, joy, cleverness, and unmitigated exuberance attract and hold me. In fact, I have found myself trying to impart this love for Mozart to my students who often raise their eyebrows and look blankly … Continue reading →

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A short story vending machine!?!

Posted on January 24, 2016 by jyourist

A short story vending machine? A short story vending machine where the stories are free? Presently there are only eight of these “Distributeurs d’histoires courtes” (“Short-story distributors”) and they are all in Grenoble, France. Last fall prototypes were launched in … Continue reading →

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City on Fire

Posted on January 22, 2016 by jyourist

I just finished this remarkable book, City on Fire, written by a new voice– Garth Risk Hallberg, in fact his first novel. It’s 900 pages long and normally I would not have tackled it during the school year –being a … Continue reading →

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“Tropical Storm” by Lydia Davis

Posted on January 17, 2016 by jyourist
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Translating English into English

Posted on January 14, 2016 by jyourist

I needed four students plus the one who wrote the above (actually 6 pages of the above) to translate this assignment for me. “This is like discovering a new language in an archeological dig,” RD smirked. One student kept translating … Continue reading →

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…with promises to stay in touch

Posted on January 10, 2016 by jyourist

I had brunch today with a student I taught many years ago. She is presently getting her PhD at Columbia in NY in English (Modern poetry and 19th c literature of the Americas). Her orals are in April and then … Continue reading →

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A writer’s palette

Posted on November 23, 2015 by jyourist

I created the image above as the students suggested the tools a writer uses in order to support their Why. I am retiring this year from teaching and one of the things I will miss a lot is writing on … Continue reading →

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